Todaywe're continuing to look at Ephesians 4:4-6. One of the outstanding characteristicsand testimony of the early church we read about in the early chapters of the Bookof Acts was that “they were in one accord” (Acts 1:14; 2:1, 46; 4:24,32; 5:12). So much so that in Acts 4:32 it was said of them: “Now themultitude of those who believed were of one heart and one soul; neither didanyone say that any of the things he possessed was his own, but they had allthings in common.”

Theyprayed to the same Lord. They prayed to the same God. They had the same HolySpirit working in each one of them. And because of that, they were in oneaccord. My friend, when you're in one accord with the fellow believers aroundyou, there is the awesome power of God that comes down upon us to be a greatwitness to all the world around us, in our Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and tothe uttermost parts of the earth. Remember that the light that shines thebrightest at home shines the farthest.

Thegreatest hindrance to the church to the witness of the church is the fact thatso many times in our churches, the believers who claim to have the same Lord donot get along with each other. That's why Paul wrote the whole book of FirstCorinthians. He heard that there were divisions among them. So much so that inhis introduction to them in 1 Corinthians 1:10 he wrote: “Now I plead withyou, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak thesame thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectlyjoined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.”

Herein Ephesians 4:4-6, Paul reminds us of the spiritual realities that make usone, one in unity, unity in the church despite our diversity and differences. Yesterdaywe talked about, “One body, one Spirit, one hope of your calling” (v. 4).Today we will be looking at the next spiritual reality, which is “One Lord”(v. 5).

InRomans 14:3-10, Paul wrote these words to the church at Rome, dealing with thedivisions they were having in their church. "He who observes the day,observes it to the Lord; and he who does not observe the day, to theLord he does not observe it. He who eats, eats to the Lord, for hegives God thanks; and he who does not eat, to the Lord he does not eat,and gives God thanks. .. . For if we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to theLord. Therefore, whether we live or die, we are the Lord's. For tothis end Christ died and rose and lived again, that He might be Lord ofboth the dead and the living.

Now,this is powerful reminder that because we are a part of one body, one Spirit, andhave one hope of our calling, and knowing one day we will stand before the LordJesus Christ and give an account of our attitudes and actions we should “endeavorto keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Ephesians 4:3).  This is also possible because we should rememberthat we are serving “the same Lord” (Romans 10:12; 1 Corinthians 12:5).

Jesusis either Lord of all, or He's not Lord at all. When there's contention amongus, it's because we have forgotten that we have the same Lord that we worship,that we follow, that we submit to, that we surrender to. If there's contentionin the church, it's always because of a person who has pride in his heartthinks he knows better maybe than the others or he has pride in his heartbecause he thinks he's better than others or he thinks he has more spiritualgifts or he's given more than others in the church. Proverbs 13:10 tells usthat: “Only by pride cometh contention…”. My friend, these things oughtnot to be. There should be oneness of spirit, oneness of heart, oneness ofpurpose and mission in our churches. When we have that, it's because there werecognize that there is one Lord.

IsJesus the Lord of your life today. Is Jesus honored and worshipped as Lord in yourchurch? How can there be disunity when we're loving and serving the “sameLord”?